SHAHEEN FLOOR REMARKS ON THE AMERICAN JOBS AND CLOSING TAX LOOPHOLES ACT OF 2010

June 08, 2010

Too many people in New
Hampshire and across this country are still struggling, so I'd like to talk
today about some of the provisions in the American Jobs and Closing Tax
Loopholes Act of 2010 that will create jobs, grow small businesses and help
unemployed Americans who are struggling to get back to work.

Mr. President, we have been
here before. On March 10, 2010, almost three months ago, the Senate took
up and passed a bill that contained most of the provisions we're considering
today.

That day, the Senate voted
with bipartisan support to stand with working families and extend the safety
net legislation and investment incentives that are helping us get through and
get out of this recession.

Unfortunately, we have not
yet been able to send this bill to President Obama for his signature, and for
the last three months we've had almost weekly standoffs on temporary measures
to do what we already voted to do in March - which is help people get back to
work. And this delay has had real consequences. Over the last six
months, the federal unemployment program has expired 4 times, most recently
over Memorial Day. The American people deserve better.

This legislation will create
jobs, increase demand for goods and services and provide stability for
Americans who have lost their jobs in this recession. In addition to
extending unemployment benefits through November, the bill also renews a tax
credit to support research and development, waives the fees on business owners
who take out Small Business Administration loans, helps municipalities make
critical infrastructure improvements and funds a much-needed youth summer jobs
program.

This legislation takes away
the tax breaks that reward corporations for sending jobs overseas, and gives
tax incentives to small businesses so they can create jobs here in the United
States.

I know there are some people
who think we've done all we should do, I
also believe we must get back on the path to a balanced budget. But, the latest jobs report, from last Friday, showed
that we still have a lot of ground to make up. During these very difficult economic times, it is necessary
for the federal government to stimulate job creation through investments and
tax cuts.

The national unemployment
rate is still nearly 10% and in many communities it's much, much higher.

What's more, nearly seven
million people, nearly half of all Americans collecting unemployment benefits,
have been out of work for six months or longer - and they've run out of the
benefits provided by their state. These are the workers collecting
federal unemployment benefits, which they are using to pay the rent, make a
mortgage payment, and buy the groceries and gas they need to go out and look
for their next job.

This legislation extends this
vital program until the end of November.

Another group of Americans
who are also really hurting right now are teenagers, who have an unemployment
rate that's more than double the national average.

Last week, I visited Nashua,
NH and Dover High School, in Dover, NH, where I used to teach. A lot of
the students there were getting pretty excited for summer.

Many of these students want
to work this summer. Many of them need to work to help save for college or to
help their families.

Unfortunately, because of the
recession, it is more difficult for a teenager to get a job today than it's
been since the end of World War II.

High unemployment has forced
more adults to compete for every job and they're often filling jobs that were
once reserved for young people.

That's a problem for our
young people and it's a threat to the future of our economy.

Last year the Congress
stepped in and we created a summer jobs program that employed tens-of-thousands
of teens nationally including over 500 in New Hampshire. I got to meet two of those students last
week.

Dawn White, who will be a
senior at Dover High School this fall, spoke with me about her "life changing"
summer job experience setting up exhibits at a local museum. Dawn told me that having a summer job built
her confidence and helped her identify a new goal for the future - to work with
children. Elizabeth Madol, a senior at
Trinity High School in Manchester, worked at the Public Library, helping
younger children with their summer reading and other activities. Elizabeth told me that this had been her
first job, and that because of it, she now has the skills and work experience
she needs to get another job this year.

Those are just two stories of
hundreds in New Hampshire. And all across
the country, the results were phenomenal. An independent study showed
that young people were excited by the skills they gained and left better
prepared to join the workforce. They were exposed to new careers and
opportunities. They learned about responsibility and developed
professional relationships. Many even left with a job offer for when they
graduate.

The legislation before us
contains $1 billion to extend the summer jobs program for another year,
creating tens of thousands of jobs, and giving hundreds more young people in
New Hampshire the chance to work.

We can't build a 21st century economy unless we start building our young workforce. We need workers
with all types of skills and interests - and by giving teenagers a foot in the
door today, they will give back to our economy in the future. That's the
power of what this program can do.

Mr. President, this is a good
bill that will make a real difference in our communities by creating jobs and
helping struggling families. It's an investment in our present and in our
future. I urge my colleagues to once again support American Jobs and
Closing Tax Loopholes Act